Slackware Linux 11 was released at the beginning of this month, which marks 13 years of continued development. Slackware Linux, while not the first Linux distribution, is the oldest surviving one, and is starting to show signs of aging. The first version of Slackware Linux was released on July 16, 1993, by Patrick Volkerding. More here.

If ideological reasons drove you to Linux, or if you just like the idea of not paying for sotware, then what you are really looking for is a clone of Windows.

But, if you use Linux because you know and like Unix, then Slackware is the way to go. If I remember, that's why Torvald's started that little project in the first place.

All the handholding, dependency resolving, GUI-fied junk that clutters up other distributrions just gets in the way. I suppose it is necessary if you don't know what kind of video card you own, or the refresh rate of your display, or are clueless about your network card. But, if you do know those things, and have enough wit about you to follow instructions. Slackware is for you.